Premonition
by Vampire Tails
Summary: One lonesome night, a fourteen-year-old Steven faces a very unique and rough challenge... Rated T- for mild violence.


**A/N: **~Cover Art was done by someone I commissioned back on Google Plus.~

Hope you all like this one. It's.. not gonna lie.. rather dark. It was also written before the movie, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but finished today, so it has some references to it. Anyway, read on!

* * *

**Premonition**

It had been a long day for all of the Crystal Gems. So long that they all retired to their rooms early that night, leaving a certain fourteen-year-old boy alone in the house. Steven glanced around the room, and sighed, feeling a bit lonely. He turned on the TV, put on a movie - but it didn't really help him feel any better.

His phone was lying on his bed. Connie could still be awake, and maybe would want to spend the night. If it wasn't too late, that is. The sun had long since set. He looked at the phone once, sighed again, and shook his head. He didn't want to bother her right now. Perhaps there was nothing to do then, but sleep. The movie wasn't helping, the Gems were tired, and Connie wasn't even an option. Not even Lars, since he was still out in space.

Steven lay down and closed his eyes. And it didn't take long for the usual darkness to be replaced with something else dark. And then.. a amell. Like fire…

He quickly sat up, gasping. Fire?!

There was fire all around him, licking at the walls and the floor. But something else interesting was happening. Whistling. Coming from downstairs.

Quickly, he slid out of bed and ran down the stairs, coughing from the smoke. The fire, despite seemingly destroying everything, didn't hurt his exposed feet. And Steven would be surprised to see that there was _another_ Steven, standing in the center of the chaos with his back to him.

Steven stared at his double. Woah…

"STEVEN! Did… did you do this?"

He had met a duplicate of himself before, several actually, so he naturally would know and call out to them. The other boy, unbeknownst to Steven, simply smirked, and crossed his arms behind his back. "So you're finally here. I was wondering how long it would take for you to sleep." He pointedly ignored the question. And, while it was Steven's voice, there was something.. _off_.. about it.

"..who are you?" Steven stared, eyes wide as he was unsettled.

A chuckle escaped the teenager's lips, and he finally turned around, the shirt, sandals and jeans changing in a snap to a snazzy red tailed vest, black pants and brown shoes, complete with a black bowtie. He was still smiling, baring his teeth slightly, and something was off about that as well. "Don't be silly, Steven. I'm you, of course!"

"...you… you're different," the boy squinted his eyes. "Something's… off.. about you!"

Steven blinked once, and tilted his head, still smiling. "I guess not even _I_ can hide from myself." A soft chuckling snort sounded as he then shook his head, messy hair following the motion. "You're pretty clever."

The other Steven looked confused at this. He was mostly examining his double's outfit, trying to figure out who he was supposed to be.

"Can't figure it out yet?" the boy stepped out of the center, white sleeved arms still crossed behind his back, and closer to his counterpart. As he drew near, his eyes changed and black markings materialized upon his cheeks, revealing golden cat eyes bearing down on the clueless boy.

Steven gasped, backing away a bit. "Your eyes! they just changed color!"

"Oh, have they?" he laughed, but it still sounded like Steven. "Didn't realize that!" he lied smoothly and happily. The boy didn't bother to correct his now glowing eyes and markings. "But let's get straight to the point." He was in Steven's face now, still smirking. "Like I said before, I'm you. From the future, if you will."

"...that explains a lot," the boy stared at his double with growing apprehension; he didn't trust him. Even though it _was_ him. He couldn't explain it, he just… couldn't trust those yellow, cat-like eyes.

And that was the first time that night that a slight frown replaced that smile, and he raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's unusual." It wasn't part of his mental script, anyways. He kept his hands hidden behind his back. "Pray tell, Stevie-boy, what does that explain?"

"...it explains why you're talking weirdly and you look different. I don't know what happened to us, but…" he bit his lip. Should he say? he didn't trust him.

And then that smile came back, and it was more like a grin, as his golden gaze turned condescending. "Of course you don't. And neither does Garnet, for that matter. We've become so unpredictable to her." His grin stretched more across his lips.

The uneasiness returned. Steven didn't know what to say…

He no longer looked his double in the eyes.

His futuristic double didn't seem to mind this at all. He kept talking, "I even taught her a little.. _lesson_.. for meddling in things she doesn't understand and for getting in my way…" he finally brought his arms from behind his back and revealed his hands, and in each was a gem, blue and red.

Steven's eyes widened and he let out a little gasp. "You - you poofed her?!"

The demon boy nodded, and a heartless but still Steven-y chuckle escaped his lips, "It was so easy! not even a fusion can withstand the might of a Diamond."

"...you…" He clenched his fists, biting his lip. "How _dare _you?!"

Steven simply stared, a sadistic but knowing look in his eyes. A not-so-subtle crack resounded in the still burning room as the boy clenched his own hands around the gems.

The boy in the pink shirt reached for them, eyes wide. "DON'T HURT THEM!"

"And why not?" he still smiled, not even flinching at his double's shouting plea. He looked innocent even as he slowly crushed the objects in his hands.

Steven looked so confused by that question. "Why not…? because they're our friends! our family! does.. does that mean nothing to you?"

"Friends? family?" those eyebrows furrowed and his smile fell into a savage frown. "They were all too willing to keep secrets from us! and they _dared_ to get mad when a secret was unearthed and it concerned them?!" a much louder crack and a crunch echoed just then, and bits of blue and red powder slipped through the spaces in between his fingers. His golden eyes widened slightly, as if horrified. Like he didn't mean to do that. But it quickly faded, his frown opening into a toothy snarl.

The brown-eyed boy stared at the other's hands, looking physically pained himself. "...come on. If you're really me, you'll know they did that to protect us… we weren't ready for the truth!"

"But we both know that all the angst, all the suffering, would have been avoided if they had just told us," the boy didn't relent, brows furrowing even more. "At least Pearl had an excuse for one of them." He remembered the silly promise. And it only made him angrier. His fists clenched even more, outright _crushing_ Sapphire and Ruby, not that it took much effort. He then opened his hands, and glanced down at his palms, at the powder to which they were reduced. Steven grinned just then, lightly guffawing as he let out a very insincere, "Oops," and raised his hands, allowing the "sand" to glide down to the burning floor.

The pure boy stared with disbelief… which quickly turned to anger. Without warning, he threw his shield at his double. But the demon boy didn't need a warning. Even this close, he merely flicked his wrist, and the thrown shield seemed to implode. That sadistic grin still lingered upon his lips.

Steven gasped and flinched at this. "...Please don't do this…"

"It's not like you can stop me," the demon boy replied with such confidence, such _evil_ as he gazed into his other's eyes. "But, come on, I'm not gonna _kill_ you. You're the key in all this, after all."

"Then I'll.. if you don't stop hurting them, I'll…" he reached for a knife, and held it close to his neck. He couldn't say it aloud, but you could get the idea.

He took a few steps back, just about shaking his head as he did. "Oh man, I forgot how clueless I was." And then he chuckled, placing a hand on his chest. "Let me reiterate. _I'm…_ the future."

"That means… if I end it here… I stop you. No one gets hurt." He kept staring, kept holding the knife to his throat.

The demon only grinned even wider, tilting his head slightly upwards and raising an eyebrow. "And upset the people who care about you? Surely you wouldn't leave them to suffer.. _twice_." He snickered. And then his head tilted to the side, "Unless, deep down inside, the beast with only one eye is already getting to you…"

"..w-what does that mean?" Steven was shaking, eyes forever wide.

The other raised seemingly placating hands, closing his eyes, and for a moment, if it weren't for those black marks and sickening smile, he almost looked like his old self. "I guess I might have told you too much. It's not important right now."

Steven didn't know what to say. He couldn't take his eyes off his double now - he wanted him to let Ruby and Sapphire go so he could heal them, but… he couldn't just say that. He didn't _dare_.

Unfortunately, Steven heard his thoughts, and he opened one eye, staring down his past self. "You saw what happened. I let them go, but they're reduced to a fine powder.. There's absolutely no coming back from that."

"...I can still try, can't I?" his voice cracked, pleading with the demon. There was no way he could believe that they… that she was gone.

The other boy seemed to sneer, no empathy or compassion entered his countenance or his blackened heart, but he nonetheless backed up more, and cleared away the fire with a snap of his fingers. There, in a heap on the floor, were the powdery remnants of Sapphire and Ruby, of Garnet, side by side. "Knock yourself out," was his cool, nonchalant reply.

Steven dropped the knife and dashed to the gems, lickng his hands and putting them on the remnants. _Please work please work please work…_

The other boy simply watched with a note of indifference, smoothly crossing an ankle over an ankle and fiddled with his cuffs. As for the powder, nothing seemed to happen.

Nothing happened.

Steven didn't give up. He was starting to cry - he couldn't let them just…

"Told ya nothing would work," the demon spoke up after a few minutes, adjusting his bowtie, "but you just had to go and give yourself more pain, more suffering. That's okay though." He grinned and shrugged, still nonchalant about it all, "I like the pain."

"..._you're not me,_" he lifted his hands, slowly, almost growling. "I would _NEVER _do this!"

The double's creepy eyes flashed with sadism. "You're right. _Now,_ that is."

Steven sniffled. "No, no, NO, I would never do this EVER!" he was sobbing now, glaring at his double.

The double glared back, and it looked terrifying, perhaps especially since he was still smiling. "You don't have a say in the matter. You don't _get_ to have a say in the matter." And then that smile dropped into a frown and his glare still persisted. "Don't you understand?! there is nothing you can do to escape this fate!"

"You're wrong!" Steven grit his teeth. "I WILL. I WON'T BECOME YOU - YOU MONSTER!" that shout echoed throughout the house.

The boy clenched his fists, leaning in slightly. His voice became a slight, growling mutter. "You know, you're a lucky one. To have a warning all laid out for you. Even if it's inevitable." He angrily jabbed his fingers towards himself, brow furrowing even more. "_I _didn't get to know! I had spent my _entire_ life loving and protecting others, just like you, only to find myself slowly plotting more against them! I figured that maybe, _maybe_ it'd all blow over, but I was wrong!" he threw his hands up. "Just face it, Steven: YOU CAN'T STOP ME!" He burst into flames, but it was blue fire, and it didn't hurt him nor did it burn his clothing. It seemed a part of him.

"YOU'RE WRONG! I…" he summoned his shield, "I.. I'll stop you!" and raised it too with a grunt.

Steven seemed a little surprised that this was the direction the maybe-not dream was going, as evident by his slightly widened eyes, but he quickly recovered and smirked, setting his arms to his sides, "Tch, as if you'll have any luck against a god." The demon boy snapped his neck to relax it by wrenching it to the side, with no hands and no side effects, and then started to levitate, blue flames still wreathed around him.

Steven was unsettled, and he took a few fearful steps back. Revelling in the fear, the boy let out a malicious guffaw before he flew at his past self at breakneck speeds, and the boy put up his spiky bubble just in case his shield didn't work. The demon pulled out a familiar sword, golden in color, at the last minute, and stabbed it into the bubble, laughing crazily.

The boy in pink gasped as the bubble popped, and the sword went straight for the shield, slashing it in two. Steven, falling to the floor, clenched his teeth after he saw… his.. it was his mom's sword. But.. _wrong_.

"C..Connie.." he muttered, as not-quite-Steven stood over him, turning the sword over in his hands, almost as if he was admiring it. After seeing what this double did to Garnet, he wanted to make sure his best friend, his Jam Bud, was okay. So he stood up, furrowing his brow. "Wh..what did you do to Connie?"

The boy in red chuckled softly, seeming to have gotten over his insanity and rage just like that. "Nothing horrible. But she didn't deserve this sword. I told her that I no longer needed her."

"You did what?!" the demon was suddenly tackled to the floor by a shield and a somewhat lumbering weight. "You can't just say that to Connie! tell me you didn't just say that to Connie!" the boy barked into his face, while the blunt end of the sword soon made contact with and held the shield from further pushing into the demon's chest and ruining his fancy clothing.

The shock had soon melted into a condescending sadism yet again. "Aw, Stevie-boy," he tutted, shaking his head as his past started tearing up. "I did, and she'll be right as rain. She's made other friends-"

"That doesn't make it okay!" he pushed even harder, narrowing his watery eyes. "Connie was in a hard place before we became friends. We were Jam Buds! don't you remember?!"

The brunet in red pushed back at equal strength, not aiming to overpower. "Of course I do! we're each other!"

"I'll NEVER be YOU!" the boy took his free hand, bubbled it and socked his counterpart in the face, which surprised both of them.

Steven even had blood slowly dripping from his nostril, and his shock faded into a deep rage, his face contorting as he pushed the boy off him with a simple flick stronger than usual. "THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Steven Universe flew off and his back slammed against the banister, which promptly collapsed into itself. He grunted as he hit that and then the floor, and a shadow loomed over him.

"This isn't a game, kid!" the demon squatted, hands on his knees as he glared into Steven's wide but exhausted eyes, the crimson fluid still flowing steadily down his face. "You're not gonna get an extra chance! _this_ is who you're gonna become! no if's, and's, or but's about it!"

The boy closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. "I still refuse to accept it.. but.. can you at least tell me your name?"

He doubted he was Steven at all. This caused the fancily dressed double to be taken aback, righting himself from his position and putting a hand to his chest as he snorted, and then guffawed. Still Steven-y in almost every way. "Oh, Pinky, you make me laugh so hard. It's a shame we have to part ways soon." The boy in pink raised an eyebrow at this. _Part ways? _The red one kept talking, "But I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give you my name." He stood up, turning the sword into a beige cane he twirled around masterfully with his finger. "It's Steven. Steven Cipher."

Steven Universe soon stood up as well, staring with wide eyes. He got the answer to his mental question when his surroundings started to fade, and he looked around, gasping.

Steven Cipher laughed again, backing up to the Warp Pad. "Just try and not be me. See what happens." And then he was gone.

A gasp erupted from the boy's throat as he jolted up in bed. His eyes flicked around, taking in everything. His home wasn't on fire anymore. He jumped out and rushed down the stairs, hoping that he wouldn't find… and nope. It wasn't there either - the powder belonging to Garnet. He sighed with relief as he slumped back against the miraculously fixed banister, and he patted himself on the chest and then stared at his hands.

"It was just a dream…" he smiled slightly, but then he realized what his dreams usually meant, and his eyes welled up.

Would he _really_ turn into Steven Cipher?

"...I'm going to try my hardest…" was his resolution, as he clenched a fist and closed his eyes. "I won't turn into him."

No matter what.

* * *

**A/N: **And that's it! I might develop this further, so I'll leave it incomplete, but for now I had just written it as a oneshot. If you'd like to see it continued, tell me! anyway, this is the first time I've ever written Steven Cipher, my AU for Steven. His design and origins was inspired by a comic where Mabel Pines had gone through the same, having her soul integrated with Bill Cipher's dying one. And so Steven Cipher came to be. It's not labeled as a crossover because it technically isn't, but if continued it may bring in some more Gravity Falls elements? I'm not sure at this point. :3  
So yeah, I hope you enjoyed this, and I'll see you in one of my other stories I guess? xD suggested are _The Property of Falls_ (TPoH x GF crossover) and _The Off Color Ruby._ So yeah. Ta ta!


End file.
